American International Group Inc. Sells 7,558 Shares of Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM)

American International Group Inc. lessened its position in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM) by 3.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 187,033 shares of the company’s stock after selling 7,558 shares during the period. American International Group Inc. owned approximately 0.18% of Sprouts Farmers Market worth $8,998,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Rhumbline Advisers boosted its stake in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 1.3% in the third quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 334,471 shares of the company’s stock valued at $14,315,000 after buying an additional 4,178 shares during the period. Paralel Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 1.1% in the third quarter. Paralel Advisors LLC now owns 54,593 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,337,000 after buying an additional 616 shares during the period. Prudential PLC bought a new stake in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market in the third quarter valued at approximately $1,602,000. QRG Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market in the third quarter valued at approximately $239,000. Finally, Invesco Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 6.6% in the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,436,821 shares of the company’s stock valued at $61,496,000 after buying an additional 88,997 shares during the period.

Sprouts Farmers Market Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:SFM opened at $77.75 on Wednesday. The company has a fifty day moving average of $73.27 and a 200-day moving average of $61.06. The company has a market capitalization of $7.81 billion, a PE ratio of 26.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.88 and a beta of 0.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a current ratio of 1.19. Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. has a 52-week low of $33.01 and a 52-week high of $82.96.

Sprouts Farmers Market (NASDAQ:SFM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 1st. The company reported $1.12 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.00 by $0.12. The business had revenue of $1.88 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.85 billion. Sprouts Farmers Market had a return on equity of 26.77% and a net margin of 4.25%. Sprouts Farmers Market’s quarterly revenue was up 8.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.98 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. will post 3.12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on SFM shares. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on Sprouts Farmers Market from $56.00 to $71.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 5th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price objective on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from $60.00 to $63.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 9th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from $31.00 to $40.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 2nd. Oppenheimer restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market in a research report on Monday, April 29th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from $48.00 to $62.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 2nd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $57.25.

Insider Activity at Sprouts Farmers Market

In related news, COO Nicholas Konat sold 31,846 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, March 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.13, for a total value of $1,978,591.98. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 82,495 shares in the company, valued at $5,125,414.35. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Sprouts Farmers Market news, SVP Kim Coffin sold 1,322 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.05, for a total transaction of $99,216.10. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 5,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $412,775. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, COO Nicholas Konat sold 31,846 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $62.13, for a total transaction of $1,978,591.98. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 82,495 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,125,414.35. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 86,561 shares of company stock worth $6,060,771 over the last three months. Company insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

About Sprouts Farmers Market

Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the retailing of fresh, natural, and organic food products under the Sprouts brand in the United States. It offers perishable product categories, including fresh produce, meat and meat alternatives, seafood, deli, bakery, floral, and dairy and dairy alternatives; and non-perishable product categories, such as grocery, vitamins and supplements, bulk items, frozen foods, beer and wine, and natural health and body care.